What if the Panthers Win the Lottery?
It is 6PM, August 10th, 2020. The phase 2 lottery has begun. You have decided to watch the lottery because it will be the only exciting moment in hockey the Florida Panthers will experience in the next couple of months.
You glare on as the people on TV construct ideas on what teams will look like with Alexis Lafrenière (possibly).
You are down to your last strain of hope. The Panthers are 3 days separated from their 5-1 loss to the New York Islanders. They won’t even be in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
A team has been picked. You glue your eyes to the tv. You tell yourself “no way are we gonna win the lottery. We don’t have good luck. I shouldn’t get my hopes up.” The Card with the team logo on it is held, and you hear the words “the team that will hold the 1st pick in the 2020 NHL draft will go to...
THE FLORIDA PANTHERS.” You sit there on your couch, bed, possibly car seat, wondering if what you have just seen is true. Did the Panthers just win the 1st pick? Is this a dream?
As of Sunday, August 9th at 2:07pm, yes it a dream, but it could be a reality!
The Florida Panthers join 7 other teams In a Phase 2 lottery that will finally dictate who picks first in the 2020 NHL Draft. Each team has a 12.5% chance of getting the 1st pick. Teams that don’t win the first pick will get pick between 9-15, depending on their record.
So what would happen if the Panthers win the right to pick 1st in the draft? They would select winger Alexis Lafrenière, right? For the Cats, that may not be the answer.
Areas Of Need
The Panthers have many holes to fill this offseason, but nothing is more of a need than their Defense. 27th in Goals Against is absolutely nothing to be proud of.
Another area of concern is Center depth. Currently, Sasha Barkov and Noel Accari are the only centermen on the books for next season. Eric Haula and Bryan Boyle are Unrestricted Free Agents. Lucas Wallmark, Dominic Toninato, and Aleksi Saarela are Restricted Free Agents. We can expect more than half of the following names to be signed, but the drop off in talent from their first line center to their 2nd line center is absolutely alarming.
Paths for the Panthers
Path 1: Take Lafrenière
The more popular decision, the Cats use their 1st pick to choose the dominant Winger. An 18 year old putting up 112 points in the QMJHL is unheard of, and leading Canada to a gold with 10 points in 5 games proves leadership. Lafrenière on the same line as Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov (both of which are near a point per game) can be absolutely deadly. Taking Lafrenière would also mean filling in a hole left by Evgenii Dadonov and/or Mike Hoffman, which leaves a lot more cap space for the Cats to use.
Path 2: Trade Down
2. That’s the amount of times the Panthers held the first pick and decided to trade down. In this scenario, that wouldn’t be a bad option either. Lafrenière is gifted and an amazing talent, but doesn’t fill in a need that the Panthers have to fix. If they do decide to trade down, look at them to aim for Defenseman Jamie Drysdale. The 18 year old is considered the best defenseman in the Draft, and produced 47 points in 49 games during his time in the OHL. At 5’11”, Drysdale doesn’t have the elite size, but his speed has made up for it. The Panthers need a 2 way defenseman, as their defensive core has no reliable Dmen except for their top paring. The Goals Against stat needs to drop. Acquiring Drysdale can do just that.
Mock Trade:
Panthers Receives 3rd pick (Drysdale) and 2021 1st
Ottawa Receives 1st pick (Lafrenière)
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